Persistent Worlds Section Introduction
The MMOG genre and its relationship to the 'mass' market is a perennial staple of conversations and presentations wherever those working in the online space gather. 2004 saw the launch of a number of highly anticipated MMOG titles that might be said to be moving the genre in the 'right' direction; World of Warcraft (Blizzard Entertainment / Vivendi Universal) has been widely touted as the most successful PC game launch ever, and City of Heroes (Cryptic Studios / NCSoft) also garnered acclaim as being a more accessible type of MMO. So how does our demographic look as we move into 2005? Is our audience still predominantly made up of an ever-increasing number of the fabled 29-year-old sunlight-averse males? The US Census Bureau reports that there are around 34 million males in the 18 to 34 age group in the United States alone, so choosing to focus our efforts on their needs might not necessarily be a bad thing.
For this issue of the IGDA Online Quarterly, we decided to poll a cross-section of MMO industry insiders for their opinions as to the current state of the industry with a particular focus on demographics. Their insights and opinions certainly make for interesting reading and we hope that this first 'virtual roundtable' will be a starting point for future articles in this newsletter. We'd also love to hear your opinions on the topics raised so please visit www.igda.org/online and get those forums buzzing.
Our second article in this issue features an interview with Erik Bethke, CEO of GoPets Ltd. Considering Seoul to be the epicenter of online game development, Erik moved to South Korea early last year with the mission of fusing the best aspects of eastern and western game design. The result is the eponymous 'GoPets', which while not an MMOG in the strictest sense, attempts to address some of the key problems associated with the genre that our contributors to the roundtable identify. Erik and other members of his team give us their insights into the fundamental differences between online gaming and gamers in the US and South Korea and what each market can learn from the other.
James Hursthouse
Editor, Persistent Worlds Section
CEO, Online Game Services Inc.